Mop



J. GLOVER MOP Filed Dec. 4, 19

%7 5 6Z7 7a @Zoaar (Patented July 4-,

STATES JOHN GLOVER, OF

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS MOP Application filed December The present invention relates to mops and has particularly to do with a convenient means for attaching a replaceable mop head upon a mop handle, the mop handle being in 5 tended to maintain the mop head in the spread condition in which it does its most effective work.

There has been a gradual development in the mop industry toward preformed or fabricated mops having a base section from which a plurality of cordsor fringe depend. The fringe or cords under such circumstances may be spread over a large area without be coming unwieldly. The conventional scrubbing mop has very long fringe and is only successful in the hands of a person capable of wielding it with considerable physical energy.

In the short cord or fringe mop, covering a large area, a device more suited for the lmnsewife and the housemaid isprovided. The objection to the short fringe mop up to the present timehas been the difficulty encountered in attaching it to a mop handle, and the difiiculty in keeping it spread. WVith the long fringe mop, it was easily prepared for use by running the fringe or ends over a bar and when the fringe, or ends were equally divided for these ends, then to clamp down a locking bar so that one half the fringe or ends are on one side of the bar the other half on the other side. The cords all extend in the same direction and are maintained in position by a simple expedient, but do not satisfactorily cover a large area with slight physical effort.

WVith the short cord or fringe mop it has been necessary to provide a base of a predetermined configuration and to attach to said base the short COIC s or fringe. To combine such a base and fringe with a mop so that a housewife may readily attach and detach the head has been a troublesome problem. There have been a number of eiforts made to provide a satisfactory connecting means between mop and handle and one which at the same time would keep the base substantially in its preform-ed configuration. The base, of course, is of a material which is adapted to be preformed as an incident to use.

4, 1930. Serial No. 493,859.

The present invention successfully takes care of all the hereinabove indicated prob lems. The object of he invention is to provide, first, a satisfactory configuration for a pro-formed mop; and secondly, to provide a satisfactory means for maintaining a mop base in the pre-formed configuration. Another object of the invention is to facilitate the attachment of a mop to a mop handle and in this connection, it is another and additional object of the invention to provide a suitable spreading and connecting means.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new and novel connecting means intermediate mop and a mop handle.

These objects, and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, are obtained by the novel construction, unique arrangement, and nnproved combination of the several elements illustrated in the several embodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing, hereby made a part of this specification, and in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of a mop and mop connecting member, a portion of the mop being broken away to illustrate the novelty of the connecting means;

Figure 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure is a longitudinal section on the 0 line 3-3 of Figure Figure 4 is a schematic View illustrative of one convenient means for inserting the spreading connecting means into a pocket upon the back of the mop base.

Figure 5 is a plan view of a second form of the invention.

Like reference characters are used to designate similar parts in the drawing and in the description of the invention which follows.

The figures may be read conjointly.

As previously indicated, the apparatus is particularly suited for use upon a preformed mop comprising a base 10, and a plurality of ends or fringe 11, which may be attached to such base in any suitable manner, as by stitching. The ends or fringe is attached at a point substantially half-way from its ends.

Over said base 10 there is arranged a layer of material of suitable texture which is somewhat V-shaped', such material being indicated 12. The V-shaped opening therein is indicated 13 and thereabout is stitching 14 providing a hem 15 to prevent wear upon the raw edge of the material. The slit 13 may be relatively narrow, much more narrow than in any type of mop with pocket that is now on the market.

From the description heretofore given and the drawing, it will be seen that the material 12 provides a pocket having a wide area of material extending from the edges where the pocket is stitched to the base 10, the material forming the upper layer extending almost entirelyover the base 10 and being firmlysecured at the edges 9 of said base 10.

Such a mop would collapse in use unless aspreader were supplied therefor. Such a spreader comprises a- V -shaped member, generally of a single piece of material, preferably flexible, and comprising a closed end 16, diverging sides 17, inwardly projecting sections 18 and extensions 19 substantially normal thereto and towards theclosed end of the device. nate in two short sections 20 adapted to engage one another. because of the spring action of the spreader Through the short sections 20 there are opposed complemental apertures 21. Beyond the opposed apertures 21, the material of the parts 20 is adapted to diverge slightly and upon the separated divergent portions 21 are bosses 22 which may be formed in any suitable manner as by stamping or by a punch press.

It will be noted that between the inwardly directed arins 18 up, to the section 20 where the section 19 impinges, there is a V -shaped opening of considerable area, the purpose of which will shortly appear.

Inserted between sections 20 is'the end of a mop handle 30. This is a metallic or other suitable piece comprising a flat blank of material which is articulated to provide a cylindrical section 31 having wings 32 extending therefrom. Through said wings 32 are opposed registering apertures 33 and 34, said wings32 normally being separated an appreciable distance. Through the first aperture 33 is inserted a post 35 having a head 36 which engages the outer surface of the material of said wings 32 and said head 36 has an extension 37 to project into aperture 33 to engage in the material of the said wing 32 to prevent rotation.

,Dependingfrom said extension 37 is a shank 38 which is adapted to project through the other wing 32 by way of aperture 34 and upon which shank is a wing nut 39 whereby upon the rotation of the nut inwardly, the two wings 32may be drawn together in order to secure the connecting member 30 .upon the end of a mop stick 40.

The latter sections 19 tel-mi In the cylindrical portion 31 there may be a plurality of inwardly projecting lugs 41 to bite the material of the mop stick 40, generally wood, to prevent its displacement and there may be arranged in the cylindrical portion 31 an aperture 42 through which a nail or screw or tack 43 may be driven to firmly secure a mop stick 40 against displacen'ient therefrom, such fastening being ancillary to that provided by the gripping of the cylindricalportion 31 about the end of the mop stick 40.

'At the front of said member 30 the material thereof is turned inwardly so as to provide a spreading section 45, and secondly to provide two truly circular portions 46 which are adapted to abut one another; Each of said sections 4(ihas a central aperture 47 therethrough and a plurality of lugyv -48 gen erally equally spaced, such lugs being adapted to register with the bosses 22 in the frame,

so that the frame may beheld at a selected angle to the mop handle stick 40 when a machine screw49 having a head 50 against which there is disposed a lock washer 51 is inserted through one side of the frame, then tl'irough the mopend, andthen through the other side of the frame, after which a nut 52 is screwed into position on said. screw 49, the nut 52 and the lock washer 51 providing a flexible but firm attachment on the connecting member 30 to the frame.

There are two ways of seating the frame within the pocket upon the mop.

The better assembly is to arrange the frame in a position normal to that which it should occupy in an assembled relation, then insert one of the sections 17 into the pocket, the material of the pocket at its rear end then being adapted to project into the V-shaped opening of the frame. Then by a slight rotation of the mop, the. other side is forced into the pocket. By a simple manual opera tion, the whole of the frame isquickly moved into position, the rotation ceasing when the said frame is in the position shown in the dotted and full lines in Figure 1.

' But for the V-shaped opening in the frame, the assembling operation would be quite difficult Once disposed in the pocket in the manner indicated, the shape of the pocket maintains the frame in correct position in the mop duringuse and there is little likelihood of accidental displacement of the mop frame from the mop.

If, at any time, there should be encountered difficulty in inserting the mop frame into the mop in the manner indicated, the mop frame may be disassembled and the two sides 17 thereof brought close together by a mere compression upon their edges after causing sections 20 to overlap. Under certain circumstances, this mayefacilitate the connection of the mop frame with the mop. After the mop frame is properly positioned in the mop the two sides 17 may then be brought into normal position by aligning the two sections 20 after the mop has been spread sufliciently to allow of this. The connecting member may then be inserted between the contiguous surfaces 20 of the mop frame, the bolt with the lock washer thereon being inserted through one side 20 of the frame, through the connecting member 30, and through the other side 20 of the frame after which the nut is placed on shank of the bolt and screwed home.

The great advantage of the present type of mop is the facility with which the mop spreading member may be attached to the mop and the security with which the mop spreading member maintains the mop in spread condition and in correct assembly with the mop stick.

A second form of the device is shown in Figure 5. Said form comprises a sheet of material 115, generally metal, having the same configuration as the spreader described hercinabove. The parts of said second form of the elements of the first hereinabove described form of the invention are given the same reference characters with one hundred added thereto.

In construction, the two forms of the device are quite alike, except as to the spreader.

in assembly and operation, the two are as nearly identical as the difference in spreader-s will permit. A mop is slipped on to the second form of spreader in the same manner that such mop is attached to a spreader of the first form when fully assembled. A rib 120 takes the place of the contiguous short sections 20, and reinforces the sheet material 115.

Instead of placing the slit in the top of the pocket longitudinally thereof, as illustrated and described, such opening may be transversely arranged. lVhen so arranged, it is customary to place such slit nearer the heel than the toe of the mop. To secure the mop so formed to the handle, precisely the same manipulations as are required for the attachment of the illustrated form of mop, are followed.

I claim:

1. The combination of a mop head comprising a collapsible spreader member having a selected peripheral configuration and possessing parts extending inwardly from one edge to a position centrally thereof, and

means at the ends of said inwardly extending parts for attaching a handle to said mop head, of a mop member comprising a lower sheet of material of a shape similar to the shape of said spreader member when the latter is extended, thrums depending from said sheet, an upper sheet of n'iaterial congruent to said lower layer and having a narrow opening extending inwardly from an edge to slightly past the center thereof, said sheets being bound together at their edges to form a pocket, and said mop head when collapsed being insertable into said pocket, the opening therein extending inwardly beyond the handle attaching means on said head.

2. In a mop, the combination of a mop head comprising a collapsible spreader member generally triangular in shape and possessing parts in the same plane as said head extending inwardly from a side to a central point, handle engaging means at the ends of said inwardly extending parts, and a mop comprising a sheet of material of the same triangular shape as said head, thrums depe ding from said sheet, an upper sheet of material also of the same generally triangular shape and having an opening extending inwardly from one edge to a point beyond the geometrical center thereof, said sheets of material being bound together at their edges to form a pocket with said notch providing an opening thereinto, said mop head when collapsed being insertable into such pocket, and said opening providing access to said handle engaging means.

JOHN GLOVER. 

